VANCOUVER, BC – The Whitecaps FC MLS Academy were motivated to break a logjam for first place in the men's division, but settled for a 1-1 draw with Altitude FC.
On a gorgeous sunny day, the first half was a duel of opposing goalkeepers as Ben Alexander and Altitude’s Marshall Herald - himself an alumni of the Whitecaps FC BMO Academy System - matched each other, save for save.
Alexander was tested early as he alertly came out to punch away a 10-yard strike from Altitude FC’s Carson Buschman-Dormand. The 'Caps best chances came from two 25-yard free kicks – but the respective efforts from Angelo Zhu and captain Matteo Samori went high.
Back to Alexander. Before the stroke of halftime, his split-second reflexes were tested off an Altitude FC free kick that was flicked on from five yards out by Ali Azarminoo.
The ’Caps finally got on the board through Samori’s hard work. He drove towards goal but was clipped at the edge of the box; the deflected ball was picked up by an onrushing David Ajagbe, who drove it home for a 1-0 lead.
However, that joy only lasted 10 minutes. Altitude’s Carson Buschman-Dormand received an expertly-placed through ball and sprinted his way to a breakaway – and a calmly slotted finish.
Altitude FC went down to 10 men when Nathan Walters was shown a red card after a heavy collision. Unfortunately, the 'Caps weren’t able to capitalize with four minutes of stoppage time.
Next up, the Whitecaps FC MLS Academy will go on the road to lace up for a rematch against Altitude FC on Wednesday, June 12, at Kinsmen Field. Match time will be at 6:30 p.m. PT.
MATCH DETAILS
Referee: Amer Ramic
Scoring Summary
64’ – VAN – David Ajagbe (Matteo Samori)
74’ – ALT – Carson Buschman-Dormand (Oliver Herbert)
Cautions
43’ – ALT – Hauke Tippe
45’ – VAN – Nikos Clarke-Tosczak
55’ – ALT – Ali Azarminoo
90’+4 – VAN – Jaden Manetta
Ejection
86’ – ALT – Nathan Walters
Whitecaps FC MLS Academy
90.Ben Alexander; 87.Sahai Williams (73.Benjamin Lee HT), 72.Nikos Clarke-Tosczak, 71.Jaden Manetta; 84.Amoni Thomas, 68.Cristiano Da Silva, 65.Mario Lefevre, 88.Angelo Zhu (55.Isaac Charbonneau, 90’); 23.Amir Ghasemi (89.Elijah Bean HT), 95.Markus Rukavina (98.David Ajagbe HT), 79.Matteo Samori © (74.Aidan Fong 79’)
Substitutes not used
80.Alex Milosevic, 91.Felix Masson
